LGHTNOVELBOOK Chapter 81
Chapter 81
“This mana problem is really something that needs to be addressed.”
Since he had decided to raise Jihad as Zeke, it was essential to either increase his total mana capacity or significantly enhance his recovery rate.
It was too much of a waste to leave such potential untapped.
“If only Guardians could use mana potions…”
Perhaps due to balance issues or just for the sake of the game’s setup, Jihad didn’t benefit much from mana potions.
As a result, the potions he had received from Linda at Raven were still left untouched.
Thanks to his overpowered specs, Do-hyeon never faced mana shortages, so it wasn’t a major concern for him.
“Well, at least I’ve gained something.”
He was satisfied after confirming Jihad’s potential, though Jihad seemed far from content.
The sight of him drooping and looking dejected was enough to tell.
Gone was the gleefully sneering figure from earlier.
– Lizaliza…
– It’s okay, Elisa. I guess that’s just how it is for me. I’m merely a porter… Maybe I wasn’t even born to play Zeke but to carry loads.”
– Liza!? Liza-liza!
– Let me be alone for a moment, Elisa.
– Liza…
Next to him, Elisa looked distressed and fidgety, her expression pitiful.
Do-hyeon, shaking his head, allowed Jihad to have his way.
“Elisa, why don’t we test your other abilities?”
Elisa had two unique traits, one of which remained untested.
This seemed like the perfect chance to verify it.
– Liza… Liza!
Elisa’s head perked up, and she jumped excitedly.
Then, she glanced cautiously at Jihad, and when he nodded, she scampered over and patted her chest.
– Liza!
“What?”
– Follow me, she says.
“Huh? Are you tagging along too?”
– Yep.
– Liza!
Unexpectedly, Jihad, who had been sulking moments ago, joined them.
Although it was bittersweet that he had so quickly reverted to being a porter after trying to prove himself, he still preferred company over solitude.
Do-hyeon chose not to press the matter.
***
With Jihad now part of the group, Elisa, brimming with a beaming smile, started looking around.
She seemed to be scouting for a suitable target.
At that moment, beyond the fog, she spotted a massive silhouette and trotted toward it.
Following her, they came across an orc resting on a rock.
It was perfect for experimentation, whether it had been separated from its group or had wandered off alone.
“She says the ability isn’t as strong as it once was, but it should work against these guys.”
“Alright, give it a shot.”
“Liza!”
“She says she just needs a small wound to start with.”
“Got it.”
It seemed like the ability only worked on wounded targets, perhaps due to a condition of infection or parasitism through injuries.
This wasn’t unusual, even in real-life biology, where infections often occur through open wounds, making the condition seem reasonable from a balance perspective.
[Thousand Transformations transforms into ‘Assassin’s Dagger.’]
Swoosh! Thud!
“Chwick!?”
The orc flinched as the dagger suddenly embedded itself in its thigh, toppling over as it tried to stand.
“Did I kill it?”
Do-hyeon carefully examined the creature and heard it groaning and writhing, relieved it wasn’t dead.
It seemed the sudden, heavy damage had startled the orc.
Having not used any skills like Striking and choosing the weakest weapon available had paid off.
– Liza!
Elisa didn’t miss the opportunity.
Ssss…
She stealthily approached the wound and inserted spider silk before the orc could notice.
[Elisa’s trait ‘Parasite’ activates.]
[Attempting ‘Parasite’ on the orc.]
“So that’s how it works.”
Do-hyeon had expected a struggle or some kind of physical battle within the wound, but the process turned out to be surprisingly technical.
Though Elisa was small, she was still a living creature.
He figured no one would fail to notice a fluffy white ball entering their body.
Fsshhh—
Elisa inserted the silk deeply into the wound and then abruptly stopped.
Several seconds passed.
[Elisa successfully achieved ‘Parasite.’]
The writhing orc fell still as the notification appeared.
There were no dramatic effects—only the orc’s left hand, previously a deep green, turned a pale white up to the wrist, as if it had been soaked in a swamp.
– Liza! Liza-liza!
“Congratulations, Elisa. I had faith in you.”
The transformed orc—now Elisa—looked elated, its fearsome visage betraying its joyful squeals.
Despite the unsettling mismatch of a cute voice coming from such a horrifying face, it was still a success.
It seemed the parasitic process didn’t extend to mimicking the host’s voice.
“Still, the transformation seems less dramatic this time.”
Do-hyeon asked, glancing at the orc’s pale left hand.
– Liza! Liza-liza!
“She says the changes are random and out of her control, Master. But it seems like the lower the host’s rank, the fewer the visible changes.”
“Interesting.”
It was a well-balanced system.
At a glance, it was hard to tell whether the creature was a regular orc or a parasitized one.
Most players wouldn’t scrutinize the left hand of every creature they encountered while hunting.
Plus, since it was the left hand, it would naturally be obscured when holding a double-edged axe, making the distinction even harder.
– Liza!
It wasn’t just from a player’s perspective, either.
Elisa seemed emboldened as she strutted confidently toward a group of orcs beyond the fog.
“Hey, wait a minute, Eli…”
“Chwick? Chwik-chwik.”
Do-hyeon froze mid-sentence.
The orcs that met Elisa’s gaze didn’t react aggressively; they barely acknowledged her.
Some even tried communicating with her, clicking and chirping in their own language.
Elisa dismissed them and strutted away, and the orcs quickly lost interest, showing no hostility.
“Chwik? Chwick!”
Unfortunately, their attention turned to Do-hyeon instead.
Only after noticing him belatedly did they attempt a reckless charge.
At that moment,
Thunk!
“Chweek!?”
The orc, suddenly struck on the back of the head, looked around in confusion.
Nearby, there was no one except the orc he had seen earlier.
“Chweek…?”
What is this? Could it really have been you who hit me?
The orc’s pupils wavered as he stared at Elisa with that incredulous look.
He looked utterly baffled, as though he had experienced something unbelievable.
Taking advantage of the moment, Do-hyeon quickly rushed in and finished off the orc.
[You have defeated the orc.]
[You have obtained the quest material, ‘Concentrated Orc Blood.’]
– Liza!
“Yeah, good job, Elisa.”
This time, there was no need for Jihad to translate.
The way she pointed at herself and cried out made it obvious to anyone that she was saying, “I did well, didn’t I?”
Elisa beamed proudly at the praise.
Her smile, paired with her grotesque face, looked so much like that of a kidnapper about to snatch a child that Do-hyeon decided not to praise her further and turned his head.
Even so, a smile crept across Do-hyeon’s lips.
“Better than I expected.”
The effects of the parasitism were more impressive than anticipated.
Although there were conditions to activate it, the skill wasn’t bad overall, and its duration didn’t seem particularly short.
Whether Elisa had a larger-than-average mana pool or the ability consumed no mana at all was unclear.
Jihad seemed to have reached the same conclusion, judging by his slightly bitter expression.
– …You’re better than me, Elisa.
– Liza?
– Yeah, it’s good that at least you’re being useful. Anyway, I’ll just go pick up items.”
– Liza? Liza-liza!
From Jihad’s perspective, suffering from a constant lack of mana, Elisa’s utility must have seemed all the more remarkable.
Still, Jihad’s expression wasn’t entirely sour; he seemed half-joking.
It looked like he had finally accepted the situation.
“Elisa’s attack flow really is great.”
Watching her flustered and trying to deny it all made for a funny sight.
He figured this was probably how she had always acted when they had lived together.
“Liza!”
After a brief conversation, Elisa called out confidently once the situation had calmed.
Naturally, Do-hyeon turned to Jihad for translation.
By now, Jihad had gotten the hang of interpreting for her.
– She says she’ll patrol the area and take care of ambushers so we can hunt comfortably.
– Liza!
Elisa nodded enthusiastically, agreeing with herself.
Do-hyeon chuckled and nodded back.
Whether ambushers came or not wouldn’t have mattered much, but her thoughtfulness was endearing.
“Alright, I’ll leave it to you.”
– Liza!
– Roger!
“You don’t need to translate things like that.”
– Roger!
As he watched Elisa’s retreating figure grow smaller, Do-hyeon turned back and gripped Thousand Transformations.
“Currently obtained concentrated blood: 2.”
He needed 48 more.
Considering he had only collected two after this much hunting, statistically, he would have to kill 150 to 200 more orcs to reach the goal.
No, given his luck, it might require even more.
It didn’t really matter, though.
[Defeat Monsters Near Brion (278/1,000)]
“Might as well complete the main quest alongside it. My level doesn’t seem to be going up much these days anyway.”
Whatever the case, he’d surely gather everything before reaching 1,000 kills.
Looking around for more orcs to hunt, Do-hyeon soon spotted two standing in the distance.
They were still concealed by the fog and hadn’t noticed him yet.
“If they don’t come to me, I’ll just go to them.”
Grinning, Do-hyeon prepared to shift the form of Thousand Transformations.
“Gahhh!?”
“Huh?”
“Hmm?”
A deep bellow suddenly echoed from behind, causing both Do-hyeon and Jihad to stop and glance at each other in confusion.
Was there another player behind them?
Before he could fully process the thought, his head instinctively turned.
And he saw it.
[Guardian ‘Elisa’ has been attacked by Player ‘Duke.’]
[You have been ambushed by Player ‘Duke.’ Self-defense is justified.]
[Killing your opponent will not increase your karma score.]
“…What?”
The message was entirely unexpected.
—
Meanwhile, on Duke’s End
Duke had been an open-beta player since God of Savior launched.
For over a year, he had solidified his place in the game, making him part of the so-called vanguard.
As such, he was confident in his skills.
Although he barely made it into the top 100,000 rankings, in a game with over a billion players, that was an impressive feat.
Statistically, he was in the top 0.01%.
While rankings weren’t an absolute measure of skill or strength, they were a fairly accurate indicator.
His rank allowed him to boast wherever he went.
Duke was one of the few to break into the ranks of what people called the “rankers.”
“Damn it.”
This was Duke’s pride, but also his greatest frustration.
The pride of being a ranker in the world’s most popular game and the despair of realizing he could climb no higher.
These two feelings constantly ate away at Duke.
“No matter what I do, I can’t climb higher. Why? What’s the problem?”
Despite pouring all the money he earned as a ranker into improving, this was his limit.
No matter what he did, his rank remained immovable, like a rock embedded in the earth.
It wasn’t just his rank.
Even his sense of strength and position within the game felt stagnant.
“What the hell is the problem? Nobody invests as much as I do!”
While others spent money frivolously, Duke devoted his resources solely to climbing the ranks.
Where others put in 1 unit of effort, he put in 5.
He firmly believed that.
The people he mingled with had long since settled into their positions, content with where they were.
Duke, on the other hand, spared no effort or money.
Yet despite everything, he was barely standing shoulder-to-shoulder with those who had made no such investment.
“…”
No, even that was an overstatement.
The truth was, he was barely hanging on.
Only through this effort could he keep up with his peers.
Without it, he would have been pushed out of the top 100,000 rankings long ago.
This was his limit.
Duke simply refused to acknowledge it.
“If I can’t climb higher, then I’ll start over.”
Some might call this foolish.
Others might even shake their heads and call it downright stupid.
But Duke couldn’t stand stagnation.
To be more precise…
“I can’t tolerate seeing people worse than me ranking higher.”
He was convinced he was better.
That his control was superior.
Yet those players were above him, and the gap between them only widened with time.
Duke believed it all came down to “traits” and “special abilities.”
Among rankers, he was one of the rare few with the most basic traits and no unique abilities.
“Damn it. If I had known, I would’ve kept retrying until I got something good back then.”
Nowadays, traits and unique abilities were widely understood to be game-changers, and people were willing to grind endlessly to acquire them.
But back then, the priority was to start playing as soon as possible to stay ahead of the curve.
Because of this, only the wealthy and naturally talented reaped the rewards, leaving players like him stuck at an inevitable ceiling.
It felt utterly unfair.
Thus, Duke made a bold decision to delete his character and start over.
“F***… I’ve screwed myself.”
And he regretted it.